Electric locker control



. April 4, 1939. J; KN ELL 2,153,088

ELEC'IlRIC LOCKER CONTROL Filed March 24, 1956 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 mun mumm

April 4, 1939. J. KNE LL ELECTRIC LOCKER CONTROL Filed March 24, 1936 vlll'll'l III'IIIIII rllilllllllllln IIIIIII 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ap'ril4,1939. J.KNELL 2,153,088

ELECTRIC LOCKER CONTROL Filed March 24, 1936 4 Sheets-Sheet a April 4, 1939. J. KNELL 2,153,038 7 ELECTRIC LOCKER CONTROL Filed March 24, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Jba - Patented Apr.4,1939

ELECTRIC LOCKER CONTROL John Knell, Ann-tram, assignor to All-Steel- Equip Company, Incorporated, a corporation of Illinois Application March 24, 1936, Serial No. 70,621

2 Claims. (01. 292-150) UNITED STATES PATET OFFICE This invention-relates to lockers and more particularly to means for fastening and unfastening the latch bars associated with the doors of the lockers.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of new and improved means electrically operated for controlling the locking of. latch bars used for securing the doors of lockers in closed position:

Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved system for controlling the locking and unlocking of the doors to a plurality of lockers, especially adapted for use inpublic schools and the like. A furtherobject of the invention is the provision of new and improved mechanism for securing doors of lockers and the like in closed position adapted to be associated with novel remote control means for automatically locking" and releas- 30 ing the doors of abank of lockers at predetermined intervals of time.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of new and improved control means for locking and releasing doors of lockers for use in schools that is so constructed and arranged that it will encourage promptness in attendance on the part of thepupils.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved means for controlling the soreleasing or unlocking'of latch bars for lockers that is simple in construction, reliable in operation, easily installed and is composed of a mini mum number of parts.

Other and further objects and advantages of 5 the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of 'one of the lockers; v

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view of the lock operating mechanism;

Fig. 31$ 9. section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 4; Fig. 4 is asection on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view of the locker system showing a plurality of lockers with the invention in position thereon together with the wiring for the control mechanism;

Fig. 6 is'a view similar to that shown in Fig. 5 59 but showing a modified formof control;

Fig. 7 is a horizontal section through one of the lockers showing a' modified form of the invention; v

Fig. 8 is a section on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6;

I Fig. 9 is a section on the line 99 of Fig. '7;

Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 7 but showing a modified form of locking mechanism;

Fig.11 is a section on the line I l--H of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is a vertical section of a door showing a modified form of lock; 5

Fig. 13 is a front elevation of a bank of lockers showing the invention in position therein in dotted lines;

Fig. 14 is a section on the line I4l4 of Fig. 13;

Fig. 15 is a side view of the lower portion of 10 one of the lockers showing the operating mechanism on an enlarged scale with parts broken away;

Fig. 16 is a similar view showing a modified form of operating mechanism; Fig. 17 is a side elevation of a vehicle showing a modified form of the invention in position therein;

Fig. 18 is a diagrammatic view of the locking system; 20

Fig. 19 is a diagrammatic view of the locking bolt; and

Fig. 20 is a diagrammatic view of the locking mechanism with a modified wiring diagram.

' It is a. common practice in schools and the like in which individual lockers are provided, for each of the pupils to have a key for securing the latch bar in its lowered position for locking the door of his individual locker. Considerable dimculty has been experienced with this arrangement due to the fact that the pupils not infrequently misplace or lose the keys. The present invention seeks to remedy this difiiculty by the provision or means whereby the use of a key is dispensed with.

In the form of the construction shown, which is by way of example only, the locking and unlocking of the doors are under the control of the teacher or an attendant and the parts are so constructed that the locking mechanism is under remote control. A plurality or bank of lockers is included in the system and the fastening mechanism is arranged so that the doors may be unlocked simultaneously or may be'locked or unlocked separately or independently as occasion may require.

Since the lockers are all of substantially the same construction, only one need be described in detail.

Referring now to the drawings, the reference characterl designates one of the lockers, each of which is oi the usual or conventional type comprising the top, bottom and vertical walls! and corner posts or uprights l. The door 3 is hinged as at 4.5 and 6 to one of the corner posts or uprights l. The locker maybe and prefer ll and 3 of the drawings.

ably is of sheet metal, the side or panels being secured together by the corner posts or uprights I. The door is adapted to be secured in closed position by an elongated latch bar 8, which is slidably mounted in a channel formed on the free edge of the door as clearly shown in Figs. 2

The latch bar 8 is provided with a plurality of catches II which are adapted to engage keepers l2 rigidly mounted on' the upright or corner post I of the locker as shown at 14 (see Figs. '3 and 4). The latch bar 8 is adapted to be elevated for disconnecting the catches H from the keepers I! by a handle member l3 which extends through slots 20 in the door 3 and is rigidly connected to the bar as shown in Fig. 3. The bar is held in lowered position by gravity as is usual in such constructions. Since the details of the construction of the locker and the latch bar constitute no part of the present invention, it is not thought necessary to further illustrate or describe the same. In the form of the construction selected to illustrate one embodiment of the invention, a plurality of the lockers -I (see Fig. 5) is suitably arranged, either together as one bank or assembly, or otherwise arranged as may be desired.

1 The latch bar for each of the doors is locked vided with a reduced end I! extending through latched position.

an enlarged opening I8 in the inner end of the locking bolt 26 for releasing said bolt when the electromagnet is energized. A spring l0 normally holds the armature IS in inoperative position shown in Fig. 2, whereby the bolt 26 is normally projected forwardly for engaging a shoulder on the lock bar for holding the same in If desired, a solenoid may be employed instead of an electromagnet for operating the locking bolt. As shown in Fig. 12, a suitable solenoid 25 is secured to the inner side of the door 3 adjacent to the free edge thereof. The sole noid is provided with a movable core or armature in the form of a plunger 26a, which is slidably mounted in the tubular stationary core 21 of the solenoid. The plunger 26a is provided with a reduced outer end forming a shoulder 28 which limits its outward movement.

The bolt or plunger26 is adapted to engage a ledge or shoulder member in the form of a bracket 29 (see Fig. 4) rigidly secured to the latch bar 8 for holding the same in lowered posi-'- tion. The ledge or shoulder member 28 is provided with an inclined surface 3| which is adapted to engage the plunger 26 for automatically retracting the same when the latch bar moves from inoperative to operative position. When it is desired to operate the door, the electromagnet I5 is energized, which retracts the plunger 26, thereby permitting the latch bar 8 to be elevated by the handle 13 for releasing the catches H from the keepers l2. 1

In order that the locking and unlocking of the doors may be controlled from a distance, the wiring for theelectromagnets is arranged in any approved manner with switches for the individ ual electromagnets and a master switch, for all of the lockers, all located at a point convenient for the teacher or attendant.

In the diagrammatic form shown, which is for illustrative purposes only, a battery 32 (see Fig. 5) is provided for furnishing the electrical energy for energizing the electromagnets l5 of the lockers. It is understood that any suitable source of electrical energy may be employed instead of the batteries. Conductors 33, 34 and 35 are arranged in parallel with the battery lead 36 and the return conductors 31, 38 and 39 are connected respectively to one pole of the'switches' ll, 42 and 43,

the other poles of which are connected with the battery lead 36. The switches are also arranged in parallel so that the circuit may be closed through either of the electromagnets as may be desired by operating the corresponding switch. The master switch 44 is also connected with the battery 36 and is adapted ,to be depressed for closing the circuit simultaneously through each .of the return conductors 31, 38 and 39.

In the practical application of the system, the

teacher or attendant will operate the master switch 44 when it-is desired to open all of the lockers simultaneously, as when the bell rings for I the beginning of school work in the morning or at noon. The switch may be left closed for a predetermined length of time, say ten -minutes during which time the pupils are supposed to place their coats, hats, etc., in their individual lockers and close the door. After the prescribed interval of time has elapsed, the switch 44 is opened and the closed doors thereby locked. Any door that is open when the circuit is opened, may, of course, be locked by closing the same and lowering the latch bar, which will cause the retraction of the plunger 26 and its snapping back to lockedtposition when the shoulder 29 passes beneath the plunger. In' case the pupil is tardy, it will be necessary for him to report to the teacher or the attendant, whereupon the individual switch ll, 42 or 43, as the case may be, will be operated for releasing the door of the pupils locker. By means of this arrangement, the pupil is relieved of the necessity of carrying the key and furthermore, promptness in attendance of the pupil will be encouraged as otherwise he is under the necessity of reporting to the teacher or attendant before he may have access to his locker. This is considered an important feature of the invention. 8

The construction shown in Fig. 6 differs from that in Fig. 5' in that the master switch is closed automatically by a time control or chronometer mechanism at predetermined times, as for instance, at five minutes before nine o'clock in the morning and five minutes to one o'clock in the afternoon and again in the afternoon when the school day is over. The time mechanism is so constructed that after a predetermined number of minutes the circuit will be opened thereby. looking all the lockers automatically. In this form of construction the master switch 45 is operated by a relay having a separate battery 41 for furnishing the electrical energy. The time control mechanism 48 may be of the usual .or any well-known construction and since the details of I this mechanism constitutes no part of the present invention, it is not thought necessary to further illustrate or describe the same. This mechanism is shown diagrammatically-at 46 in Fig. 6.

The system shown in Fig. 6' is also provided with the individual switches ll, 42 and 43 for the lockers I, there being one individual switch for each locker, as inthe construction previously described.

A modified form of the locking mechanism is shown in Fig. 7. In this form of the construction, the latch bar 49, carried by the door 3, is operated by a solenoid 5|. In this form of the construction, the solenoid 5| is provided with an armature in the form of a plunger 52 having its lower end bent laterally as at 53 (see Fig. 9) for engaging in the opening 54 in latch bar 49. In

' purpose. The spring 56 is attached to theupright or corner post I! of the locker by means of a bolt or rivet 51 and the free end of the spring engages the hinged edge of the door as at the inner edge of theangle portion 58 (see Fig. '7) for opening the door when the latch is released. In order to counter-balance the weight of the latch bar 49, a spring may, if desired, be provided for assisting in supporting the bar.

In the form of construction shown in Figs. and 11, the latch bar 59 is normally held in released position by suitable means. In this form of the device, the latch bar is held in elevated position by a spring 65 (see Fig. 11) engaging beneath the bar. The latch bar 59 is provided with an opening 62 which is adapted to receive the reduced end of the plunger 63, which constitutes the armature for the solenoid 64.

In this form of construction, when the plunger 63 is withdrawn, the spring 6| will elevate the lock bar, thereby releasing the door so that the same may be opened. In order to lock the door, it is only necessary to close the same and by means of the handle [3 move the latch bar 59 to its lowered position whereby the plunger 63 will be projected forwardly by the spring 66, Fig. 10, and will engage the opening 62 for holding the bar 59 in lowered position for locking the door.

In Figs. 13 to 16 is shown a bank of lockers having a modified form of operating mechanism. In this form of the construction, a plurality of lockers I is arranged in a bank 61 of anysuitable length and this bank is provided with a common shaft 68 extending the full length of the bank and rotatably mounted in a suitable position therein.

In the form of construction selected to illustrate one embodiment of the, invention, this shaft 68 extends along the upper portion of the lockers adjacent to the upper channel frame members 69 of the lockers l. Rigidly mounted on this shaftare a plurality of locking members H, one for each locker. .The ends of the looking members II are bent, forwardly as at 12 whereby they may be turned above the latch bar 8 of each of the doors for preventing the upward movement of the latch bar.

In the form of construction shown, the latch bars 8 are normally held in this lowerposition by gravity and the latch elements 14 are adapted leasing the latch elements 14 from the keepers 15. When the laterally extending portion 12 of the locking member II is in the position shown in Fig. 14, the latch bar 8 is held from upward movement and the door is thereby held in locked position. When it is desired to release the latch bar 8, the shaft 68 is rotated counterclockwise, Fig. 14, which will withdraw the laterally extending portions 12 of the locking member from above the latch bar whereby the same may be raised to unlocked position.

Suitable means are provided for locking the bar in its lowered position. In the form of the device selected to illustrate one embodiment of the invention, a solenoid mechanism I6 is employed for rotating the shaft 68. This mechanism comprises a crank or arm 11 which is rigidly attached to the shaft 68 at one end and is pivotvally connected to an extension 18 on the movable core 19 of the solenoid 16. The core 19 of the solenoid is normally held in its lower position by a suitable spring 80 operating between the channel bar 69 and the crank or arm ll.

It will be seen that the locking member H is normally held in position for locking the latch bar 8 against upward movement and that upon energizing the winding 8| of the solenoid, the latching member 'H will be rotated to the right, Figs. 14 and 15, after which the latch bar may be moved downwardly for releasing the door.

In Fig. 16 is'shown a modified construction for releasing the locking member H. In this form of the construction, an electromagnet 82 is employed for this purpose. The armature 83 is pivoted as at 84 at one end and has its other end connected to a link 85, which in turn is pivoted to the crank or arm ll of the latch bar 68. When the electromagnet 82 is energized, the parts are moved to the dotted line position shown in Fig.

v'16 so that the latch bar 8 may be lowered for either manually or by time mechanism, as in the previously described construction.

The electromagnet or solenoid may be located in any convenient position, either on the outer side or on the inner side of the lockers. In the construction shown, these electrical devices are mounted within the lockers as indicated at 86.

While the shaft 68 is shown as being located at the upper portion of the locker above the doors, it is understood that it may be located in the lower portion of the lockers below the doors if it is considered to be advantageous or desir-- able. Where the gravity type of latch bar is employed, the locking member II will, of course, en e above some portion or projection of the latch bar for preventing its elevation while the door is closed.

In Figs. 17 to 20 inclusive, is shown a modified form of the invention as applied to the doors of an automobile.

In this form of construction, the lock for one of the doors is manually operated while those of the remaining doors are electrically operated by electromagnets or solenoids. The switch for controlling the electricaly operated lock mechanism is controlled by the manually operated lock mechanism.

In Fig. 17 is shown a motor vehicle 81 having the front and rear doors 88 and 89 respectively,

side of the vehicle provided with a latch 90 .of the conventional type having the keyhole SI on each side. The front door 88 on the right the locking mechanism. Each of the remaining doors is provided with a latch mechanism 66 similar to the latch 90, but the locking mechanism 94 is different in that it is electrically operated.

The construction is shown diagrammatically in Fig. 18. The right front door is provided with a conventional latch 90 having the spindle 55 provided with'a handle 94 on one end and an operating arm 96 which engages a'shoulder 61 on the latch bolt 90, in the other end. The bolt 96 is normally pressed outwardly by a spring 80, and its outward end is beveled as at I00a as is usual in such constructions.

In opening the door, the handle 94 is turned for causing the arm 96 to engage the shoulder 91 for retracting the latch bolt 08. The bolt may also be opened by a lever, not shown, which is connected to the link I00. The link I00 has a slotted end IOI engaging a pin I02 rigidly mounted, on the latch bolt. The slot in the link permits the latch bolt to be operated by the handle 94. Likewise, the latch bolt'may be withdrawn by the link I00 without affecting the handle 94.

Since the details of the lock constituteno part of the present construction, it is not thought necessary to further illustrate or describe the same, and since the latching mechanism 93 for each ofthe remaining doors is substantially the same as the latch 90, it is not thought necessary to describe or illustrate the same.

The locking mechanism forv the latch 00 is such that when the key is turned to lock the door, a circuit is momentarily closed through electrically operated mechanism, which operates a lock on each of the other doors.

As shown,- the spring-pressed latch bolt I03 is provided with a recess I04 that is adapted to be engaged by a locking bolt I05 operated by the electromagnets I06 and I01. As shown, diagrammatically in Fig. 1, this locking bolt constitutes a projection on the rocking armature I06 of the magnets I06 and I01. This armature is pivoted as at I09 and a spring H0 connected to the projection or looking bolt I05 is adaptedto pass dead center when the armature is rocked for holding the locking bolt in locked or unlocked position.

When the magnet I06 is energized, the bolt I05 will rock from the position shown in Fig. 18 into the recess I04 for preventing the retraction of the latch bolt I03 and when the magnet I01 is energized, the lock bolt will be rocked out of engagement of the recess I04.

The switch mechanism for opening and closing the electric circuit will now be described. For convenience of illustration, the cylinder III of the lock for the front door, Fig. 18, is shownas being provided with a pin H2 eccentrically arranged and on this-pin is pivoted a locking bolt H3, which is adapted to be raised and lowered by the rotation of the cylinder III, which .is accomplished in the usual manner by a key 92.

When the key 92 is turned so that the locking bolt H3 is in its lowermost position, the bolt will engage in an opening H5 in the rotating spindle for preventing its rotation, whereby the handle 04 is locked from rotation, thereby locking the door in its closed position.

The cylinder III is provided with a wiper arm operated by the wiper arm H6 during the rotation for closing the circuit'through the electromagnets H6 and H1. The arm H6 is provided with a pair of inclined faces H0 and I20 which are adapted to engage spring fingers I2I and I22 for moving them into engagement with contact members I23 and I24 for closing said circuits. The operation of the device will now be described. When the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 18, the doors may be unlatched by rotating the handles in the usual manner. when it is desired to lock the doors, the key 02 is inserted in the cylinder III in the usual manner and upon rotating the same, to cause the bolt H3 to engage in the opening H5, the wiper arm H6 will engage first the switch H8, thereby closing the circuit through the electromagnet I08, and then the switch H1 for closing the circuit through the electromagnet I06. When the switch H1 is closed, the electromagnet I06 is energized, which will rock the armature I08 for causing the projection I05 to engage the recess I04 in each of the remaining door latches for locking the doors.

The circuit may be traced from the battery I25, which is groundedas at I29, through the conductor I26, switch H1, conductor I21, electromagnet I06, to ground at I28. When the cylinder III is rotated to unlock the door, the wiper arm H6 will momentarily close the circuit I I1, but since the armature is already in contact with I the electromagnet I06, this will notafiect 'said armature since it is held in locked position by the spring H0 which has passed dead center, but

when'the arm, in its rotation, passes the switch H8, it will close that switch, thereby energizing the electromagnet I01, which will rock the armature, thereby releasing the projection I05 from the no ch or recess I04 and releasing the looks. The spring H0 will pass dead center in the opposite direction and will hold the locking bar I05 in unlocked position.

. The circuit may be traced from the battery I25, which is grounded on the vehicle as at I29, through the conductor I26, switch H8, conductor I30, electromagnets I 01 of each of the doors. and to the ground as at I3I. The energizing of the electromagnets I01 will rock the locking bolts out of engagement with the recesses I 04 in the latches Hi.

In Fig. 20 is shown a slightly different wiring diagram from that shown in Fig. 18. This arrangement diflers from that disclosed in Fig, 20, in that the cylinder III and wiper arm H6a constitute one'element of a switch. The battery I25 is connected to the wiper arm H6a by the conductor I40. The circuit is closed through the electromagnet I06 by rotating the arm I I6a into engagement with the contact H1a of the conductor I21a for locking the doors and is turned into engagement with the switch contact 'H8 a of the conductor Itla for closing the circuit through the electromagnet I01a for releasing the latches or the doors the same as in the previous construction.

If desired, means may be provided for withdrawingthe locking bolt 26, Fig. 2, and also the v retracted against the tension of the spring in which has one end connected to the casing 146 and its other end connected to a pin I741 rigid'y mounted on the latch bolt 26 and slidably mounted in a slot ltd in said casing. 7

It is thought from the foregoing taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, that the construction and operation of my device will be apparent to those skilled in the art and that changes in size, shape, proportion and details of construction may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a locker having cooperating door and jamb members, a latch bar slidably mounted on one of said members and adapted to cooperate with a keeper mounted on the other member, a bolt automatically movable into position for loclsing the latch bar in latched position and retractible to clear said bar for movement to unlatched position, a link pivotally mounted at one end on the member carrying the latch bar and having its opposite end pivoted to the bolt for positively retracting the bolt, and electromagnetic means for moving said link to retract said bolt.

2. In a locker having cooperating door and jamb members, a latch bar slidably mounted on one of said members and having a projecting shoulder element provided with a cam surface inclined from the outer end of said shoulder toward a point on the latch bar below said outer end, a bolt movable into position above said shoulder element for locking the latch bar in latched position and retractible to clear said bar for movement to unlatched position, spring means biasing the bolt to locking position and yieldable to permit the bolt to move toward retracted position when the cam surface moves downwardly in contact with the bolt, and elecetic means adapted when energized to tro in. 2

positively retract the bolt.

JOHN KNELL. 

